The Ericsson Racing Team has been out all week, training in Guanabara Bay off Rio de Janeiro (BRA), and tuning in before Saturday’s in-port race. Scheduled for kick off at 13.00 (local time), the fourth in-port regatta of the Volvo Ocean Race will be the first under John Kostecki’s (USA) leadership and with Ross Halcrow (NZL) as crewmember. Her Royal Highness Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden, godmother of the Ericsson yacht, will be the team’s onboard guest.

The Ericsson Racing Team has been busy practising all week, ahead of Saturday’s in-port race in Guanabara Bay, Rio de Janeiro. John Kostecki, the team’s skipper for leg five and inshore tactician, arrived early into Rio to start training with the team, whilst talented sail trimmer Ross Halcrow has settled in “as if he had always been there”, comments Neal McDonald (GBR).

“We’ve been race training for the last couple of days and things have been going well,” said Kostecki. “We’ve had two changes to the crew for the in-port race and that’s all shaping up nicely. Rosco [Halcrow] is a world class trimmer; he’s filling David Rolfe’s position for the in-port race and Rolfe’s doing the bow now which he’s very good at. These small changes have been a benefit and we feel like we’re ready to go. Hopefully we’ll get a podium finish.”

The team arrived in Rio in a disappointing fifth place, and is now seriously looking to improve its result. “Our current ranking doesn’t reflect the team’s potential”, said Kostecki.

Despite a broken propeller shaft door and a few electrical problems, the Ericsson yacht arrived into Rio in reasonably good shape. “We didn’t have too much to do on the boat, which was nice,” commented Neal McDonald, who has now taken over as the team’s watch captain, along with in-port race helmsman Tim Powell (GBR). “This has allowed us to get back on the water and get sailing. The whole team has looked at every aspect of the campaign where there is room for improvement. We have added some new sails to the program during this stopover, which should make a difference.”

“It has been a tough period for the team”, confesses Ericsson Racing Team navigator Steve Hayles. “The way the team has encompassed the change is impressive and everybody is very focussed on the job in hand and in putting points on the table. We’ve had some good days training here. The bay’s a complicated place and the tides and currents are a big issue. But we’re feeling pretty confident for Saturday’s race - it’s a windward-leeward course and we know the boat is strong here.”

The course for the in-port will be three to four laps depending on the wind conditions and the running time will be between two and three hours. According to local weather forecasts, there is a front approaching the east coast of Brazil, but no one quite knows when it will arrive in the harbour and what conditions it will bring.

McDonald predicts a pretty open field for the race: “The bay is going to be interesting - it’s potentially shifty with varying pressure. It will be one of those regattas where the boats are very close and the places could change very quickly.”

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